Didn't see the game as it was in the early hours but I wasn't that surprised by the result.

1) Players aren't interested in playing friendly internationals at the end of the season
2) We had a half strength team out (they should still do better though, they all play at a high club level)
3) Our record away from home is TERRIBLE
4) Our coach is a complete fucking clown who is hated by all right minded people
5) We always seem to struggle when we play in hot conditions (I'm assuming Florida at this time of year is quite hot)
6) USA are a good team these days and certainly better than us

So we take it on the chin and look not very confidently to the WC qualifiers but I don't think we are really going to get any better with Levein in charge.

I was expecting the US to win, but I did not expect a blow out, especially with Dempsey and Altidore watching from the stands. Donovan has missed almost a year of playing for the US between minor injuries and club commitments so he had a point to prove and did so.

Honestly, I hope your boys qualify for the next WC -- & outperform England in the process. But, then, I still chuckle over your suggestion Scotland would erect a gigantic "Fuck you, Henman!" billboard, were Andy Murray to win Wimbledon. (No way he's better than a blancmange, though.)

Classic Scottish footballer story.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-18241762
i.e, dumb as fuck, mashed out of head and completely unfit.

Same guy currently has a insurance fraud case going after a friend crashed his Ferrari and he claimed to the insurance company he had struck a deer two weeks after the wrecked Ferrari was found abandoned smashed into a bridge. Like spelling, dates aren't a strong point.

Big upset to see the Dutch lose, throwing the group into chaos. Time now to root for Germany.

It wasn't that big of an upset. Denmark is ranked #9 by FIFA, which is one spot ahead of Portugal. It's the group of Death for a reason, and the Danes might actually win the group.
I just can't believe how weak Group A is compared to the other three groups in the tournament.

I only saw the last half hour of the Holland / Denmark match but Holland looked like they couldn't care less. Then we had Portugal, despite having some great players in the squad, doing what they almost always do and killed the game against the Germans by having everyone behind the ball. Group of Death? More like Group of Boredom!

The Spain / Italy match was decent though, Italy looked better than I thought they might. Possible dark horses on that performance I'd say.

Croat hooligans vs. Polish riot police?

Who ya got!?

Italy did look quite good. Not very many teams in recent years have played as well against Spain as Italy did.

Really looking forward to Germany/Netherlands tomorrow.

US beat Spain in '09.

Walcott and Welbeck made my day yesterday.

Welbeck's goal was a thing of beauty.

Netherlands really shit the bed.

Germany marches on.

Really looking forward to seeing the QF matchups.

Been a strange Finals with the two worst teams in Group A qualifying and now Netherlands going out beause they have too many good players!

Germany now have 13 wins from 13 in the competition but will they win it? Usually the unbeatable form side slip up at some point leaving the field open.

Portugal have improved greatly from the first game when they were dreadful, could be challengers if they don't revert to negative tactics.

Tonight Italy could go out despite looking pretty good against Spain (didn't see Italy v Croatia). I have a soft spot for Italy having spent a couple of summers there so I hope they get through. Spain struggled a bit against Italy but easily put a poor Ireland team to the sword, we'll see how they do against a decent looking Croatia outfit tonight.

Elsewhere as a passionate Ukrainian nationalist I'll be hoping Sheva and the boys do the country proud and put out who ever we are playing in the final Group D match. It's some arrogant and decadent Western nation, I forget which....

Balotelli is the punkest of punk bitches, but that goal against Ireland was something special.

racist

I do kind of hate Italians.

The Italians are the floppiest of floppy, so frustrating to watch.....ugh.

A minority opinion, but I always enjoy watching Italy play.

I'm a bit torn with Germany. They have all the pieces and I am personally rooting for them. Yet, while they have won three in a row, they seem to lack something to me. I think I just do not trust Gomez to carry the scoring all the way through. Fingers crossed though and they certainly have a good shot and one of the easier QF draws.

Ukraine was robbed.

Yea the ball was over the goal line, but the initial pass was offside before the shot so...

my lads quid is going this way



mines going this way



somehow I think we're both a bit off...

Ugh. Italy cam go f themselves.....even though they were better today. Rooney needs to grow 4 inches, increase his vertical, or learn how to head the damn ball......COME ON! (Gob voice)

Italy was better and I like their team better. But I was kinf of wanting to see England go through since I'm rooting for Germany and figure Italy will give them a tougher game. Pirlo was great today,

The truth of the matter is that England weren't very good across the whole tournament. They were very lucky to win their group and lucky to get 7 points when they could quite easily have got nul points.

A poor French side dominated them for most of the match, the Sweden game could have gone either way, although you have to give them some credit for coming back from 2-1 down, and they were hardly convincing against Ukraine.

They were given a footballing lesson for 105 of the 120 minutes against the Italians. If Italy hadn't been so profligate the score line could have been embarrassing and Pirlo gave probably the best individual display of the competition so far, topped off with his outrageous penalty.

The fact that Roy Hodgson was virtually required to leave a rank bad Wayne Rooney on the pitch and take off Danny Welbeck, who was one of England's few bright spots over the four games, tells you a lot about the English mentality. England don't have any world class players, clinging on to some forlorn hope that Wayne Rooney is going to propel Albion to glory is misguided to say the least. Also Jack Wilshere seems to have become world class by being absent. It would have been different if he was fit goes the thinking. Eh, no it wouldn't.

I would like to see Germany win as for me they are the most exciting team to watch but I suspect Spain will triumph with their technically accomplished but quite dull tiki-taka game plan.